Controlled cleavage process using pressurized fluid

ABSTRACT

A technique for forming a film of material ( 12 ) from a donor substrate ( 10 ). The technique has a step of introducing energetic particles ( 22 ) in a selected manner through a surface of a donor substrate ( 10 ) to a selected depth ( 20 ) underneath the surface, where the particles have a relatively high concentration to define a donor substrate material ( 12 ) above the selected depth and the particles for a pattern at the selected depth. An energy source such as pressurized fluid is directed to a selected region of the donor substrate to initiate a controlled cleaving action of the substrate ( 10 ) at the selected depth ( 20 ), whereupon the cleaving action provides an expanding cleave front to free the donor material from a remaining portion of the donor substrate.

CROSS REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This application claims priority from the provisional patentapplication entitled A CONTROLLED CLEAVAGE PROCESS AND RESULTING DEVICE,filed May 12, 1997 and assigned Application Ser. No. 60/046,276, thedisclosure of which is hereby incorporated in its entirety for allpurposes. This application is related to U.S. application Ser. No.______ (Attorney Docket No. 18419-000150), which has been filed on thesame date, and incoporated by reference herein.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The present invention relates to the manufacture of substrates.More particularly, the invention provides a technique including a methodand device for cleaving a substrate in the fabrication of asilicon-on-insulator substrate for semiconductor integrated circuitsusing a pressurized fluid, for example. But it will be recognized thatthe invention has a wider range of applicability; it can also be appliedto other substrates for multi-layered integrated circuit devices,three-dimensional packaging of integrated semiconductor devices,photonic devices, piezoelectronic devices, microelectromechanicalsystems (“MEMS”), sensors, actuators, solar cells, flat panel displays(e.g., LCD, AMLCD), biological and biomedical devices, and the like.

[0003] Craftsmen or more properly crafts-people have been buildinguseful articles, tools, or devices using less useful materials fornumerous years. In some cases, articles are assembled by way of smallerelements or building blocks. Alternatively, less useful articles areseparated into smaller pieces to improve their utility. A common exampleof these articles to be separated include substrate structures such as aglass plate, a diamond, a semiconductor substrate, and others.

[0004] These substrate structures are often cleaved or separated using avariety of techniques. In some cases, the substrates can be cleavedusing a saw operation. The saw operation generally relies upon arotating blade or tool, which cuts through the substrate material toseparate the substrate material into two pieces. This technique,however, is often extremely “rough” and cannot generally be used forproviding precision separations in the substrate for the manufacture offine tools and assemblies. Additionally, the saw operation often hasdifficulty separating or cutting extremely hard and/or brittle materialssuch as diamond or glass.

[0005] Accordingly, techniques have been developed to separate thesehard and/or brittle materials using cleaving approaches. In diamondcutting, for example, an intense directional thermal/mechanical impulseis directed preferentially along a crystallographic plane of a diamondmaterial. This thermal/mechanical impulse generally causes a cleavefront to propagate along major crystallographic planes, where cleavingoccurs when an energy level from the thermal/mechanical impulse exceedsthe fracture energy level along the chosen crystallographic plane.

[0006] In glass cutting, a scribe line using a tool is often impressedin a preferred direction on the glass material, which is generallyamorphous in character. The scribe line causes a higher stress areasurrounding the amorphous glass material. Mechanical force is placed oneach side of the scribe line, which increases stress along the scribeline until the glass material fractures, preferably along the scribeline. This fracture completes the cleaving process of the glass, whichcan be used in a variety of applications including households.

[0007] Although the techniques described above are satisfactory, for themost part, as applied to cutting diamonds or household glass, they havesevere limitations in the fabrication of small complex structures orprecision workpieces. For instance, the above techniques are often“rough” and cannot be used with great precision in fabrication of smalland delicate machine tools, electronic devices, or the like.Additionally, the above techniques may be useful for separating onelarge plane of glass from another, but are often ineffective forsplitting off, shaving, or stripping a thin film of material from alarger substrate. Furthermore, the above techniques may often cause morethan one cleave front, which join along slightly different planes, whichis highly undesirable for precision cutting applications.

[0008] From the above, it is seen that a technique for separating a thinfilm of material from a substrate which is cost effective and efficientis often desirable.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0009] According to the present invention, an improved technique forremoving a thin film of material from a substrate using a controlledcleaving action using a pressurized fluid or fluid jet is provided. Thistechnique allows an initiation of a cleaving process on a substrateusing a single or multiple cleave region(s) through the use ofcontrolled energy (e.g., spatial distribution) and selected conditionsto allow an initiation of a cleave front(s) and to allow it to propagatethrough the substrate to remove a thin film of material from thesubstrate.

[0010] In a specific embodiment, the present invention provides aprocess for forming a film of material from a donor substrate using acontrolled cleaving process with a pressurized fluid. The processincludes a step of introducing energetic particles (e.g., charged orneutral molecules, atoms, or electrons having sufficient kinetic energy)through a surface of a donor substrate to a selected depth underneaththe surface, where the particles are at a relatively high concentrationto define a thickness of donor substrate material (e.g., thin film ofdetachable material) above the selected depth. To cleave the donorsubstrate material, the method provides energy in the form ofpressurized fluid or fluid jet to a selected region of the donorsubstrate to initiate a controlled cleaving action in the donorsubstrate, whereupon the cleaving action is made using a propagatingcleave front(s) to free the donor material from a remaining portion ofthe donor substrate.

[0011] In most of the embodiments, a cleave is initiated by subjectingthe material with sufficient energy to fracture the material in oneregion, causing a cleave front, without uncontrolled shattering orcracking. The cleave front formation energy (E_(c)) must often be madelower than the bulk material fracture energy (E_(mat)) at each region toavoid shattering or cracking the material. The directional energyimpulse vector in diamond cutting or the scribe line in glass cuttingare, for example, the means in which the cleave energy is reduced toallow the controlled creation and propagation of a cleave front. Thecleave front is in itself a higher stress region and once created, itspropagation requires a lower energy to further cleave the material fromthis initial region of fracture. The energy required to propagate thecleave front is called the cleave front propagation energy (E_(p)). Therelationship can be expressed as:

E _(c) =E _(p)+[cleave front stress energy]

[0012] A controlled cleaving process is realized by reducing E_(p) alonga favored direction(s) above all others and limiting the availableenergy to be below the E_(p) of other undesired directions. In anycleave process, a better cleave surface finish occurs when the cleaveprocess occurs through only one expanding cleave front, althoughmultiple cleave fronts do work.

[0013] Numerous benefits are achieved over pre-existing techniques usingthe present invention. In particular, the present invention usescontrolled energy and selected conditions to preferentially cleave athin film of material from a donor substrate which includesmulti-material sandwiched films. This cleaving process selectivelyremoves the thin film of material from the substrate while preventing apossibility of damage to the film or a remaining portion of thesubstrate. Accordingly, the remaining substrate portion can be re-usedrepeatedly for other applications.

[0014] Additionally, the present invention uses a relatively lowtemperature during the controlled cleaving process of the thin film toreduce temperature excursions of the separated film, donor substrate, ormulti-material films according to other embodiments. In most cases, thecontrolled cleaving process can occur at, for example, room temperature,as well as others. This lower temperature approach allows for morematerial and process latitude such as, for example, cleaving and bondingof materials having substantially different thermal expansioncoefficients. In other embodiments, the present invention limits energyor stress in the substrate to a value below a cleave initiation energy,which generally removes a possibility of creating random cleaveinitiation sites or fronts. This reduces cleave damage (e.g., pits,crystalline defects, breakage, cracks, steps, voids, excessiveroughness) often caused in pre-existing techniques. Moreover, thepresent invention reduces damage caused by higher than necessary stressor pressure effects and nucleation sites caused by the energeticparticles as compared to pre-existing techniques.

[0015] The present invention achieves these benefits and others in thecontext of known process technology. However, a further understanding ofthe nature and advantages of the present invention may be realized byreference to the latter portions of the specification and attacheddrawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0016] FIGS. 1-11 are simplified diagrams illustrating a controlledcleaving technique according to an embodiment of the present invention;and

[0017] FIGS. 12-18 are simplified cross-sectional view diagramsillustrating a method of forming a silicon-on-insulator substrateaccording to the present invention.

DESCRIPTION OF THE SPECIFIC EMBODIMENT

[0018] The present invention provides a technique for removing a thinfilm of material from a substrate while preventing a possibility ofdamage to the thin material film and/or a remaining portion of thesubstrate. The thin film of material is attached to or can be attachedto a target substrate to form, for example, a silicon-on-insulatorwafer. The thin film of material can also be used for a variety of otherapplications. The invention will be better understood by reference tothe Figs. and the descriptions below.

[0019] 1. Controlled Cleaving Techniques

[0020]FIG. 1 is a simplified cross-sectional view diagram of a substrate10 according to the present invention. The diagram is merely anillustration and should not limit the scope of the claims herein. Asmerely an example, substrate 10 is a silicon wafer which includes amaterial region 12 to be removed, which is a thin relatively uniformfilm derived from the substrate material. The silicon wafer 10 includesa top surface 14, a bottom surface 16, and a thickness 18. Substrate 10also has a first side (side 1) and a second side (side 2) (which arealso referenced below in the Figs.). Material region 12 also includes athickness 20, within the thickness 18 of the silicon wafer. The presentinvention provides a novel technique for removing the material region 12using the following sequence of steps.

[0021] Selected energetic particles implant 22 through the top surface14 of the silicon wafer to a selected depth 24, which defines thethickness 20 of the material region 12, termed the thin film ofmaterial. A variety of techniques can be used to implant the energeticparticles into the silicon wafer. These techniques include ionimplantation using, for example, beam line ion implantation equipmentmanufactured from companies such as Applied Materials, EatonCorporation, Varian, and others. Alternatively, implantation occursusing a plasma immersion ion implantation (“PIII”) technique. Examplesof plasma immersion implantation techniques are described in “RecentApplications of Plasma Immersion Ion Implantation,” Paul K. Chu, ChungChan, and Nathan W. Cheung, SEMICONDUCTOR INTERNATIONAL, pp. 165-172,June 1996, and “Plasma Immersion Ion Implantation—A Fledgling Techniquefor Semiconductor Processing,”, P. K. Chu, S. Qin, C. Chan, N. W.Cheung, and L. A. Larson, MATERIAL SCIENCE AND ENGINEERING REPORTS, AReview Journal, pp. 207-280, Volume R17, Nos. 6-7, (Nov. 30, 1996),which are both hereby incorporated by reference for all purposes.Furthermore, implantation can occur using ion shower. Of course,techniques used depend upon the application.

[0022] Depending upon the application, smaller mass particles aregenerally selected to reduce a possibility of damage to the materialregion 12. That is, smaller mass particles easily travel through thesubstrate material to the selected depth without substantially damagingthe material region that the particles traverse through. For example,the smaller mass particles (or energetic particles) can be almost anycharged (e.g., positive or negative) and/or neutral atoms or molecules,or electrons, or the like. In a specific embodiment, the particles canbe neutral and/or charged particles including ions such as ions ofhydrogen and its isotopes, rare gas ions such as helium and itsisotopes, and neon. The particles can also be derived from compoundssuch as gases, e.g., hydrogen gas, water vapor, methane, and hydrogencompounds, and other light atomic mass particles. Alternatively, theparticles can be any combination of the above particles, and/or ionsand/or molecular species and/or atomic species. The particles generallyhave sufficient kinetic energy to penetrate through the surface to theselected depth underneath the surface.

[0023] Using hydrogen as the implanted species into the silicon wafer asan example, the implantation process is performed using a specific setof conditions. Implantation dose ranges from about 10¹⁵ to about 10¹⁸atoms/cm², and preferably the dose is greater than about 10¹⁶ atoms/cm².Implantation energy ranges from about 1 KeV to about 1 MeV , and isgenerally about 50 KeV. Implantation temperature ranges from about −200to about 600° C., and is preferably less than about 400° C. to prevent apossibility of a substantial quantity of hydrogen ions from diffusingout of the implanted silicon wafer and annealing the implanted damageand stress. The hydrogen ions can be selectively introduced into thesilicon wafer to the selected depth at an accuracy of about ±−0.03 to±0.05 microns. Of course, the type of ion used and process conditionsdepend upon the application.

[0024] Effectively, the implanted particles add stress or reducefracture energy along a plane parallel to the top surface of thesubstrate at the selected depth. The energies depend, in part, upon theimplantation species and conditions. These particles reduce a fractureenergy level of the substrate at the selected depth. This allows for acontrolled cleave along the implanted plane at the selected depth.Implantation can occur under conditions such that the energy state ofsubstrate at all internal locations is insufficient to initiate anon-reversible fracture (i.e., separation or cleaving) in the substratematerial. It should be noted, however, that implantation does generallycause a certain amount of defects (e.g., micro-detects) in the substratethat can be repaired by subsequent heat treatment, e.g., thermalannealing or rapid thermal annealing.

[0025]FIG. 2 is a simplified energy diagram 200 along a cross-section ofthe implanted substrate 10 according to the present invention. Thediagram is merely an illustration and should not limit the scope of theclaims herein. The simplified diagram includes a vertical axis 201 thatrepresents an energy level (E) (or additional energy) to cause a cleavein the substrate. A horizontal axis 203 represents a depth or distancefrom the bottom of the wafer to the top of the wafer. After implantingparticles into the wafer, the substrate has an average cleave energyrepresented as E 205, which is the amount of energy needed to cleave thewafer along various cross-sectional regions along the wafer depth. Thecleave energy (E_(c)) is equal to the bulk material fracture energy(E_(mat)) in non-implanted regions. At the selected depth 20, energy(E_(cz)) 207 is lower since the implanted particles essentially break orweaken bonds in the crystalline structure (or increase stress caused bya presence of particles also contributing to lower energy (E_(cz)) 207of the substrate) to lower the amount of energy needed to cleave thesubstrate at the selected depth. The present invention takes advantageof the lower energy (or increased stress) at the selected depth tocleave the thin film in a controlled manner.

[0026] Substrates, however, are not generally free from defects or“weak” regions across the possible cleave front or selected depth z_(o)after the implantation process. In these cases, the cleave generallycannot be controlled, since they are subject to random variations suchas bulk material non-uniformities, built-in stresses, defects, and thelike. FIG. 3 is a simplified energy diagram 300 across a cleave frontfor the implanted substrate 10 having these defects. The diagram 300 ismerely an illustration and should not limit the scope of the claimsherein. The diagram has a vertical axis 301 which represents additionalenergy (E) and a horizontal axis 303 which represents a distance fromside 1 to side 2 of the substrate, that is, the horizontal axisrepresents regions along the cleave front of the substrate. As shown,the cleave front has two regions 305 and 307 represented as region 1 andregion 2, respectively, which have cleave energies less than the averagecleave energy (E_(cz)) 207 (possibly due to a higher concentration ofdefects or the like). Accordingly, it is highly likely that the cleaveprocess begins at one or both of the above regions, since each regionhas a lower cleave energy than surrounding regions.

[0027] An example of a cleave process for the substrate illustrated bythe above Fig. is described as follows with reference to FIG. 4. FIG. 4is a simplified top-view diagram 400 of multiple cleave fronts 401, 403propagating through the implanted substrate. The cleave fronts originateat “weaker” regions in the cleave plane, which specifically includesregions 1 and 2. The cleave fronts originate and propagate randomly asshown by the arrows. A limitation with the use of random propagationamong multiple cleave fronts is the possibility of having differentcleave fronts join along slightly different planes or the possibility offorming cracks, which is described in more detail below.

[0028]FIG. 5 is a simplified cross-sectional view 500 of a film cleavedfrom a wafer having multiple cleave fronts at, for example, regions 1305 and 2 307. This diagram is merely an illustration and should notlimit the scope of the claims herein. As shown, the cleave from region 1joined with the cleave from region 2 at region 3 309, which is definedalong slightly different planes, may initiate a secondary cleave orcrack 311 along the film. Depending upon the magnitude of the difference313, the film may not be of sufficient quality for use in manufacture ofsubstrates for integrated circuits or other applications. A substratehaving crack 311 generally cannot be used for processing. Accordingly,it is generally undesirable to cleave a wafer using multiple fronts in arandom manner. An example of a technique which may form multiple cleavefronts in a random manner is described in U.S. Pat. No. 5,374,564, whichis in the name of Michel Bruel (“Bruel”), and assigned to Commissariat Al'Energie Atomique in France. Bruel generally describes a technique forcleaving an implanted wafer by global thermal treatment (i.e., thermallytreating the entire plane of the implant) using thermally activateddiffusion. Global thermal treatment of the substrate generally causes aninitiation of multiple cleave fronts which propagate independently. Ingeneral, Bruel discloses a technique for an “uncontrollable” cleavingaction by way of initiating and maintaining a cleaving action by aglobal thermal source, which may produce undesirable results. Theseundesirable results include potential problems such as an imperfectjoining of cleave fronts, an excessively rough surface finish on thesurface of the cleaved material since the energy level for maintainingthe cleave exceeds the amount required, and many others. The presentinvention overcomes the formation of random cleave fronts by acontrolled distribution or selective positioning of energy on theimplanted substrate.

[0029]FIG. 6 is a simplified cross-sectional view of an implantedsubstrate 10 using selective positioning of cleave energy according tothe present invention. This diagram is merely an illustration, andshould not limit the scope of the claims herein. The implanted waferundergoes a step of selective energy placement 601 or positioning ortargeting which provides a controlled cleaving action of the materialregion 12 at the selected depth 603. In preferred embodiments, selectedenergy placement 607 occurs near an edge or corner region of theselected depth 603 of substrate 10. The impulse (or impulses) isprovided using energy sources. Examples of sources include, amongothers, a chemical source, a mechanical source, an electrical source,and a thermal sink or source. The chemical source can include a varietysuch as particles, fluids, gases, or liquids. These chemical sources canalso include chemical reaction to increase stress in the materialregion. The chemical source is introduced as flood, time-varying,spatially varying, or continuous. In other embodiments, a mechanicalsource is derived from rotational, translational, compressional,expansional, or ultrasonic energies. The mechanical source can beintroduced as flood, time-varying, spatially varying, or continuous. Infurther embodiments, the electrical source is selected from an appliedvoltage or an applied electromagnetic field, which is introduced asflood, time-varying, spatially varying, or continuous. In still furtherembodiments, the thermal source or sink is selected from radiation,convection, or conduction. This thermal source can be selected from,among others, a photon beam, a fluid jet, a liquid jet, a gas jet, anelectro/magnetic field, an electron beam, a thermoelectric heating, afurnace, and the like. The thermal sink can be selected from a fluidjet, a liquid jet, a gas jet, a cryogenic fluid, a super-cooled liquid,a thermo-electric cooling means, an electro/magnetic field, and others.Similar to the previous embodiments, the thermal source is applied asflood, time-varying, spatially varying, or continuous. Still further,any of the above embodiments can be combined or even separated,depending upon the application. Of course, the type of source useddepends upon the application.

[0030]FIG. 6 is a simplified cross-sectional view of an implantedsubstrate 10 using selective positioning of cleave energy according tothe present invention. This diagram is merely an illustration, andshould not limit the scope of the claims herein. The implanted waferundergoes a step of selective energy placement 601 or positioning ortargeting which provides a controlled cleaving action of the materialregion 12 at the selected depth 603. In preferred embodiments, selectedenergy placement 607 occurs near an edge or corner region of theselected depth 603 of substrate 10. The impulse (or impulses) isprovided using energy sources. Examples of sources include, amongothers, a chemical source, a mechanical source, an electrical source,and a thermal sink or source. The chemical source can include a varietysuch as particles, fluids, gases, or liquids. These chemical sources canalso include chemical reaction to increase stress in the materialregion. The chemical source is introduced as flood, time-varying,spatially varying, or continuous. In other embodiments, a mechanicalsource is derived from rotational, translational, compressional,expansional, or ultrasonic energies. The mechanical source can beintroduced as flood, time-varying, spatially varying, or continuous. Infurther embodiments, the electrical source is selected from an appliedvoltage or an applied electromagnetic field, which is introduced asflood, time-varying, spatially varying, or continuous. In still furtherembodiments, the thermal source or sink is selected from radiation,convection, or conduction. This thermal source can be selected from,among others, a photon beam, a fluid jet, a liquid jet, a gas jet, anelectro/magnetic field, an electron beam, a thermo-electric heating, afurnace, and the like. The thermal sink can be selected from a fluidjet, a liquid jet, a gas jet a cryogenic fluid, a super-cooled liquid, athermo-electric cooling means, an electro/magnetic field, and others.Similar to the previous embodiments, the thermal source is applied asflood, time-varying, spatially varying, or continuous. Still further,any of the above embodiments can be combined or even separated,depending upon the application. Of course, the type of source useddepends upon the application.

[0031] In a specific embodiment, the energy source can be a fluid jetthat is pressurized (e.g., compressional) according to an embodiment ofthe present invention. FIG. 6A shows a simplified cross-sectional viewdiagram of a fluid jet from a fluid nozzle 608 used to perform thecontrolled cleaving process according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. The fluid jet 607 (or liquid jet or gas jet) impinges on anedge region of substrate 10 to initiate the controlled cleaving process.The fluid jet from a compressed or pressurized fluid source is directedto a region at the selected depth 603 to cleave a thickness of materialregion 12 from substrate 10 using force, e.g., mechanical, chemical,thermal. As shown, the fluid jet separates substrate 10 into tworegions, including region 609 and region 611 that separate from eachother at selected depth 603. The fluid jet can also be adjusted toinitiate and maintain the controlled cleaving process to separatematerial 12 from substrate 10. Depending upon the application, the fluidjet can be adjusted in direction, location, and magnitude to achieve thedesired controlled cleaving process. The fluid jet can be a liquid jetor a gas jet or a combination of liquid and gas.

[0032] In a preferred embodiment, the energy source can be acompressional source such as, for example, compressed fluid that isstatic. FIG. 6B shows a simplified cross-sectional view diagram of acompressed fluid source 607 according to an embodiment of the presentinvention. The compressed fluid source 607 (e.g., pressurized liquid,pressurized gas) is applied to a sealed chamber 621, which surrounds aperiphery or edge of the substrate 10. As shown, the chamber is enclosedby device 623, which is sealed by, for example, O-rings 625 or the like,and which surrounds the outer edge of the substrate. The chamber has apressure maintained at P_(C) that is applied to the edge region ofsubstrate 10 to initiate the controlled cleaving process at the selecteddepth of implanted material. The outer surface or face of the substrateis maintained at pressure P_(A) which can be ambient pressure e.g., 1atmosphere or less. A pressure differential exists between the pressurein the chamber, which is higher, and the ambient pressure. The pressuredifference applies force to the implanted region at the selected depth603. The implanted region at the selected depth is structurally weakerthan surrounding regions, including any bonded regions. Force is appliedvia the pressure differential until the controlled cleaving process isinitiated. The controlled cleaving process separates the thickness ofmaterial 609 from substrate material 611 to split the thickness ofmaterial from the substrate material at the selected depth.Additionally, pressure P_(C) forces material region 12 to separate by a“prying action” from substrate material 611. During the cleavingprocess, the pressure in the chamber can also be adjusted to initiateand maintain the controlled cleaving process to separate material 12from substrate 10. Depending upon the application, the pressure can beadjusted in magnitude to achieve the desired controlled cleavingprocess. The fluid pressure can be derived from a liquid or a gas or acombination of liquid and gas.

[0033] In a specific embodiment, the present invention provides acontrolled-propagating cleave. The controlled-propagating cleave usesmultiple successive impulses to initiate and perhaps propagate acleaving process 700, as illustrated by FIG. 7. This diagram is merelyan illustration, and should not limit the scope of the claims herein. Asshown, the impulse is directed at an edge of the substrate, whichpropagates a cleave front toward the center of the substrate to removethe material layer from the substrate. In this embodiment, a sourceapplies multiple pulses (i.e., pulse 1, 2, and 3) successively to thesubstrate. Pulse 1 701 is directed to an edge 703 of the substrate toinitiate the cleave action. Pulse 2 705 is also directed at the edge 707on one side of pulse 1 to expand the cleave front. Pulse 3 709 isdirected to an opposite edge 711 of pulse 1 along the expanding cleavefront to further remove the material layer from the substrate. Thecombination of these impulses or pulses provides a controlled cleavingaction 713 of the material layer from the substrate.

[0034]FIG. 8 is a simplified illustration of selected energies 800 fromthe pulses in the preceding embodiment for the controlled-propagatingcleave. This diagram is merely an illustration, and should not limit thescope of the claims herein. As shown, the pulse 1 has an energy levelwhich exceeds average cleaving energy (E), which is the necessary energyfor initiating the cleaving action. Pulses 2 and 3 are made using lowerenergy levels along the cleave front to maintain or sustain the cleavingaction. In a specific embodiment, the pulse is a laser pulse where animpinging beam heats a selected region of the substrate through a pulseand a thermal pulse gradient causes supplemental stresses which togetherexceed cleave formation or propagation energies, which create a singlecleave front. In preferred embodiments, the impinging beam heats andcauses a thermal pulse gradient simultaneously, which exceed cleaveenergy formation or propagation energies. More preferably, the impingingbeam cools and causes a thermal pulse gradient simultaneously, whichexceed cleave energy formation or propagation energies.

[0035] Optionally, a built-in energy state of the substrate or stresscan be globally raised toward the energy level necessary to initiate thecleaving action, but not enough to initiate the cleaving action beforedirecting the multiple successive impulses to the substrate according tothe present invention. The global energy state of the substrate can beraised or lowered using a variety of sources such as chemical,mechanical, thermal (sink or source), or electrical, alone or incombination. The chemical source can include a variety such asparticles, fluids, gases, or liquids. These sources can also includechemical reaction to increase stress in the material region. Thechemical source is introduced as flood, time-varying, spatially varying,or continuous. In other embodiments, a mechanical source is derived fromrotational, translational, compressional, expansional, or ultrasonicenergies. The mechanical source can be introduced as flood,time-varying, spatially varying, or continuous. In further embodiments,the electrical source is selected from an applied voltage or an appliedelectromagnetic field, which is introduced as flood, time-varying,spatially varying, or continuous. In still further embodiments, thethermal source or sink is selected from radiation, convection, orconduction. This thermal source can be selected from, among others, aphoton beam, a fluid jet, a liquid jet, a gas jet, an electro/magneticfield, an electron beam, a thermoelectric heating, and a furnace. Thethermal sink can be selected from a fluid jet, a liquid jet, a gas jet,a cryogenic fluid, a super-cooled liquid, a thermoelectric coolingmeans, an electro/magnetic field, and others. Similar to the previousembodiments, the thermal source is applied as flood, time-varying,spatially varying, or continuous. Still further, any of the aboveembodiments can be combined or even separated, depending upon theapplication. Of course, the type of source used also depends upon theapplication. As noted, the global source increases a level of energy orstress in the material region without initiating a cleaving action inthe material region before providing energy to initiate the controlledcleaving action.

[0036] In a specific embodiment, an energy source elevates an energylevel of the substrate cleave plane above its cleave front propagationenergy but is insufficient to cause self-initiation of a cleave front.In particular, a thermal energy source or sink in the form of heat orlack of heat (e.g., cooling source) can be applied globally to thesubstrate to increase the energy state or stress level of the substratewithout initiating a cleave front. Alternatively, the energy source canbe electrical, chemical, or mechanical. A directed energy sourceprovides an application of energy to a selected region of the substratematerial to initiate a cleave front which self-propagates through theimplanted region of the substrate until the thin film of material isremoved. A variety of techniques can be used to initiate the cleaveaction. These techniques are described by way of the Figs. below.

[0037]FIG. 9 is a simplified illustration of an energy state 900 for acontrolled cleaving action using a single controlled source according toan aspect of the present invention. This diagram is merely anillustration, and should not limit the scope of the claims herein. Inthis embodiment, the energy level or state of the substrate is raisedusing a global energy source above the cleave front propagation energystate, but is lower than the energy state necessary to initiate thecleave front. To initiate the cleave front, an energy source such as alaser directs a beam in the form of a pulse at an edge of the substrateto initiate the cleaving action. Alternatively, the energy source can bea cooling fluid (e.g., liquid, gas) that directs a cooling medium in theform of a pulse at an edge of the substrate to initiate the cleavingaction. The global energy source maintains the cleaving action whichgenerally requires a lower energy level than the initiation energy.

[0038] An alternative aspect of the invention is illustrated by FIGS. 10and 11. FIG. 10 is a simplified illustration of an implanted substrate1000 undergoing rotational forces 1001, 1003. This diagram is merely anillustration, and should not limit the scope of the claims herein. Asshown, the substrate includes a top surface 1005, a bottom surface 1007,and an implanted region 1009 at a selected depth. An energy sourceincreases a global energy level of the substrate using a light beam orheat source to a level above the cleave front propagation energy state,but lower than the energy state necessary to initiate the cleave front.The substrate undergoes a rotational force turning clockwise 1001 on topsurface and a rotational force turning counter-clockwise 1003 on thebottom surface which creates stress at the implanted region 1009 toinitiate a cleave front. Alternatively, the top surface undergoes acounter-clockwise rotational force and the bottom surface undergoes aclockwise rotational force. Of course, the direction of the forcegenerally does not matter in this embodiment.

[0039]FIG. 11 is a simplified diagram of an energy state 1100 for thecontrolled cleaving action using the rotational force according to thepresent invention. This diagram is merely an illustration, and shouldnot limit the scope of the claims herein. As previously noted, theenergy level or state of the substrate is raised using a global energysource (e.g., thermal, beam) above the cleave front propagation energystate, but is lower than the energy state necessary to initiate thecleave front. To initiate the cleave front, a mechanical energy meanssuch as rotational force applied to the implanted region initiates thecleave front. In particular, rotational force applied to the implantedregion of the substrates creates zero stress at the center of thesubstrate and greatest at the periphery, essentially being proportionalto the radius. In this example, the central initiating pulse causes aradially expanding cleave front to cleave the substrate.

[0040] The removed material region provides a thin film of siliconmaterial for processing. The silicon material possesses limited surfaceroughness and desired planarity characteristics for use in asilicon-on-insulator substrate. In certain embodiments, the surfaceroughness of the detached film has features that are less than about 60nm, or less than about 40 nm, or less than about 20 nm. Accordingly, thepresent invention provides thin silicon films which can be smoother andmore uniform than pre-existing techniques.

[0041] In a preferred embodiment, the present invention is practiced attemperatures that are lower than those used by pre-existing techniques.In particular, the present invention does not require increasing theentire substrate temperature to initiate and sustain the cleaving actionas pre-existing techniques. In some embodiments for silicon wafers andhydrogen implants, substrate temperature does not exceed about 400° C.during the cleaving process. Alternatively, substrate temperature doesnot exceed about 350° C. during the cleaving process. Alternatively,substrate temperature is kept substantially below implantingtemperatures via a thermal sink, e.g., cooling fluid, cryogenic fluid.Accordingly, the present invention reduces a possibility of unnecessarydamage from an excessive release of energy from random cleave fronts,which generally improves surface quality of a detached film(s) and/orthe substrate(s). Accordingly, the present invention provides resultingfilms on substrates at higher overall yields and quality.

[0042] The above embodiments are described in terms of cleaving a thinfilm of material from a substrate. The substrate, however, can bedisposed on a workpiece such as a stiffener or the like before thecontrolled cleaving process. The workpiece joins to a top surface orimplanted surface of the substrate to provide structural support to thethin film of material during controlled cleaving processes. Theworkpiece can be joined to the substrate using a variety of bonding orjoining techniques, e.g., electrostatics, adhesives, interatomic. Someof these bonding techniques are described herein. The workpiece can bemade of a dielectric material (e.g., quartz, glass, sapphire, siliconnitride, silicon dioxide), a conductive material (silicon, siliconcarbide, polysilicon, group III/V materials, metal), and plastics (e.g.,polyimide-based materials). Of course, the type of workpiece used willdepend upon the application.

[0043] Alternatively, the substrate having the film to be detached canbe temporarily disposed on a transfer substrate such as a stiffener orthe like before the controlled cleaving process. The transfer substratejoins to a top surface or implanted surface of the substrate having thefilm to provide structural support to the thin film of material duringcontrolled cleaving processes. The transfer substrate can be temporarilyjoined to the substrate having the film using a variety of bonding orjoining techniques, e.g., electrostatics, adhesives, interatomic. Someof these bonding techniques are described herein. The transfer substratecan be made of a dielectric material (e.g., quartz, glass, sapphire,silicon nitride, silicon dioxide), a conductive material (silicon,silicon carbide, polysilicon, group III/V materials, metal), andplastics (e.g., polyimide-based materials). Of course, the type oftransfer substrate used will depend upon the application. Additionally,the transfer substrate can be used to remove the thin film of materialfrom the cleaved substrate after the controlled cleaving process.

[0044] 2. Silicon-On-Insulator Process

[0045] A process for fabricating a silicon-on-insulator substrateaccording to the present invention may be briefly outlined as follows:

[0046] (1) Provide a donor silicon wafer (which may be coated with adielectric material);

[0047] (2) Introduce particles into the silicon wafer to a selecteddepth to define a thickness of silicon film;

[0048] (3) Provide a target substrate material (which may be coated witha dielectric material);

[0049] (4) Bond the donor silicon wafer to the target substrate materialby joining the implanted face to the target substrate material;

[0050] (5) Increase global stress (or energy) of implanted region atselected depth without initiating a cleaving action (optional);

[0051] (6) Provide stress (or energy) using a fluid jet to a selectedregion of the bonded substrates to initiate a controlled cleaving actionat the selected depth;

[0052] (7) Provide additional energy to the bonded substrates to sustainthe controlled cleaving action to free the thickness of silicon filmfrom the silicon wafer (optional);

[0053] (8) Complete bonding of donor silicon wafer to the targetsubstrate; and

[0054] (9) Polish a surface of the thickness of silicon film.

[0055] The above sequence of steps provides a step of initiating acontrolled cleaving action using an energy applied to a selectedregion(s) of a multi-layered substrate structure to form a cleavefront(s) according to the present invention. This initiation step beginsa cleaving process in a controlled manner by limiting the amount ofenergy applied to the substrate. Further propagation of the cleavingaction can occur by providing additional energy to selected regions ofthe substrate to sustain the cleaving action, or using the energy fromthe initiation step to provide for further propagation of the cleavingaction. This sequence of steps is merely an example and should not limitthe scope of the claims defined herein. Further details with regard tothe above sequence of steps are described in below in references to theFigs.

[0056] FIGS. 12-18 are simplified cross-sectional view diagrams ofsubstrates undergoing a fabrication process for a silicon-on-insulatorwafer according to the present invention. The process begins byproviding a semiconductor substrate similar to the silicon wafer 2100,as shown by FIG. 12. Substrate or donor includes a material region 2101to be removed, which is a thin relatively uniform film derived from thesubstrate material. The silicon wafer includes a top surface 2103, abottom surface 2105, and a thickness 2107. Material region also includesa thickness (z₀), within the thickness 2107 of the silicon wafer.Optionally, a dielectric layer 2102 (e.g., silicon nitride, siliconoxide, silicon oxynitride) overlies the top surface of the substrate.The present process provides a novel technique for removing the materialregion 2101 using the following sequence of steps for the fabrication ofa silicon-on-insulator wafer.

[0057] Selected energetic particles 2109 implant through the top surfaceof the silicon wafer to a selected depth, which defines the thickness ofthe material region, termed the thin film of material. As shown, theparticles have a desired concentration 2111 at the selected depth (z₀).A variety of techniques can be used to implant the energetic particlesinto the silicon wafer. These techniques include ion implantation using,for example, beam line ion implantation equipment manufactured fromcompanies such as Applied Materials, Eaton Corporation, Varian, andothers. Alternatively, implantation occurs using a plasma immersion ionimplantation (“PIII”) technique. Furthermore, implantation can occurusing ion shower. Of course, techniques used depend upon theapplication.

[0058] Depending upon the application, smaller mass particles aregenerally selected to reduce a possibility of damage to the materialregion. That is, smaller mass particles easily travel through thesubstrate material to the selected depth without substantially damagingthe material region that the particles traversed through. For example,the smaller mass particles (or energetic particles) can be almost anycharged (e.g., positive or negative) and/or neutral atoms or molecules,or electrons, or the like. In a specific embodiment, the particles canbe neutral and/or charged particles including ions of hydrogen and itsisotopes, rare gas ions such as helium and its isotopes, and neon. Theparticles can also be derived from compounds such as gases, e.g.,hydrogen gas, water vapor, methane, and other hydrogen compounds, andother light atomic mass particles. Alternatively, the particles can beany combination of the above particles, and/or ions and/or molecularspecies and/or atomic species.

[0059] The process uses a step of joining the implanted silicon wafer toa workpiece or target wafer, as illustrated in FIG. 13. The workpiecemay also be a variety of other types of substrates such as those made ofa dielectric material (e.g., quartz, glass, silicon nitride, silicondioxide), a conductive material (silicon, polysilicon, group III/Vmaterials, metal), and plastics (e.g., polyimide-based materials). Inthe present example, however, the workpiece is a silicon wafer.

[0060] In a specific embodiment, the silicon wafers are joined or fusedtogether using a low temperature thermal step. The low temperaturethermal process generally ensures that the implanted particles do notplace excessive stress on the material region, which can produce anuncontrolled cleave action. In one aspect, the low temperature bondingprocess occurs by a self-bonding process. In particular, one wafer isstripped to remove oxidation therefrom (or one wafer is not oxidized). Acleaning solution treats the surface of the wafer to form O-H bonds onthe wafer surface. An example of a solution used to clean the wafer is amixture of H₂O₂-H₂SO₄. A dryer dries the wafer surfaces to remove anyresidual liquids or particles from the wafer surfaces. Self-bondingoccurs by placing a face of the cleaned wafer against the face of anoxidized wafer.

[0061] Alternatively, a self-bonding process occurs by activating one ofthe wafer surfaces to be bonded by plasma cleaning. In particular,plasma cleaning activates the wafer surface using a plasma derived fromgases such as argon, ammonia, neon, water vapor, and oxygen. Theactivated wafer surface 2203 is placed against a face of the otherwafer, which has a coat of oxidation 2205 thereon. The wafers are in asandwiched structure having exposed wafer faces. A selected amount ofpressure is placed on each exposed face of the wafers to self-bond onewafer to the other.

[0062] Alternatively, an adhesive disposed on the wafer surfaces is usedto bond one wafer onto the other. The adhesive includes an epoxy,polyimide-type materials, and the like. Spin-on-glass layers can be usedto bond one wafer surface onto the face of another. These spin-on-glass(“SOG”) materials include, among others, siloxanes or silicates, whichare often mixed with alcohol-based solvents or the like. SOG can be adesirable material because of the low temperatures (e.g., 150 to 250°C.) often needed to cure the SOG after it is applied to surfaces of thewafers.

[0063] Alternatively, a variety of other low temperature techniques canbe used to join the donor wafer to the target wafer. For instance, anelectrostatic bonding technique can be used to join the two waferstogether. In particular, one or both wafer surface(s) is charged toattract to the other wafer surface. Additionally, the donor wafer can befused to the target wafer using a variety of commonly known techniques.Of course, the technique used depends upon the application.

[0064] After bonding the wafers into a sandwiched structure 2300, asshown in FIG. 14, the method includes a controlled cleaving action toremove the substrate material to provide a thin film of substratematerial 2101 overlying an insulator 2305 the target silicon wafer 2201.The controlled-cleaving occurs by way of selective energy placement orpositioning or targeting 2301, 2303 of energy sources onto the donorand/or target wafers. For instance, an energy impluse(s) can be used toinitiate the cleaving action. The impulse (or impulses) is providedusing an energy source which include, among others, a mechanical source,a chemical source, a thermal sink or source, and an electrical source.

[0065] The controlled cleaving action is initiated by way of any of thepreviously noted techniques and others and is illustrated by way of FIG.14. For instance, a process for initiating the controlled cleavingaction uses a step of providing energy 2301, 2303 to a selected regionof the substrate to initiate a controlled cleaving action at theselected depth (z₀) in the substrate, whereupon the cleaving action ismade using a propagating cleave front to free a portion of the substratematerial to be removed from the substrate. In a specific embodiment, themethod uses a single impulse to begin the cleaving action, as previouslynoted. Alternatively, the method uses an initiation impulse, which isfollowed by another impulse or successive impulses to selected regionsof the substrate. Alternatively, the method provides an impulse toinitiate a cleaving action which is sustained by a scanned energy alongthe substrate. Alternatively, energy can be scanned across selectedregions of the substrate to initiate and/or sustain the controlledcleaving action.

[0066] Optionally, an energy or stress of the substrate material isincreased toward an energy level necessary to initiate the cleavingaction, but not enough to initiate the cleaving action before directingan impulse or multiple successive impulses to the substrate according tothe present invention. The global energy state of the substrate can beraised or lowered using a variety of sources such as chemical,mechanical, thermal (sink or source), or electrical, alone or incombination. The chemical source can include particles, fluids, gases,or liquids. These sources can also include chemical reaction to increasestress in the material region. The chemical source is introduced asflood, time-varying, spatially varying, or continuous. In otherembodiments, a mechanical source is derived from rotational,translational, compressional, expansional, or ultrasonic energies. Themechanical source can be introduced as flood, time-varying, spatiallyvarying, or continuous. In further embodiments, the electrical source isselected from an applied voltage or an applied electromagnetic field,which is introduced as flood, time-varying, spatially varying, orcontinuous. In still further embodiments, the thermal source or sink isselected from radiation, convection, or conduction. This thermal sourcecan be selected from, among others, a photon beam, a fluid jet, a liquidjet, a gas jet, an electro/magnetic field, an electron beam, athermo-electric heating, and a furnace. The thermal sink can be selectedfrom a fluid jet, a liquid jet, a gas jet, a cryogenic fluid, asuper-cooled liquid, a thermoelectric cooling means, an electro/magneticfield, and others. Similar to the previous embodiments, the thermalsource is applied as flood, time-varying, spatially varying, orcontinuous. Still further, any of the above embodiments can be combinedor even separated, depending upon the application. Of course, the typeof source used depends upon the application. As noted, the global sourceincreases a level of energy or stress in the material region withoutinitiating a cleaving action in the material region before providingenergy to initiate the controlled cleaving action.

[0067] In a preferred embodiment, the method maintains a temperaturewhich is below a temperature of introducing the particles into thesubstrate. In some embodiments, the substrate temperature is maintainedbetween −200 and 450° C. during the step of introducing energy toinitiate propagation of the cleaving action. Substrate temperature canalso be maintained at a temperature below 400° C. or below 350° C. Inpreferred embodiments, the method uses a thermal sink to initiate andmaintain the cleaving action, which occurs at conditions significantlybelow room temperature.

[0068] In an alternative preferred embodiment, the mechanical and/orthermal source can be a fluid jet that is pressurized (e.g.,compressional) according to an embodiment of the present invention. Thefluid jet (or liquid jet or gas jet) impinges on an edge region ofsubstrate 2300 to initiate the controlled cleaving process. The fluidjet from a compressed or pressurized fluid source is directed to aregion at the selected depth 2111 to cleave a thickness of materialregion 2101 from substrate 2100. The fluid jet separates region 2101from substrate 2100 that separate from each other at selected depth2111. The fluid jet can be adjusted to initiate and maintain thecontrolled cleaving process to separate material 2101 from substrate2100. Depending upon the application, the fluid jet can be adjusted indirection, location, and magnitude to achieve the desired controlledcleaving process.

[0069] A final bonding step occurs between the target wafer and thinfilm of material region according to some embodiments, as illustrated byFIG. 15. In one embodiment, one silicon wafer has an overlying layer ofsilicon dioxide, which is thermally grown overlying the face beforecleaning the thin film of material. The silicon dioxide can also beformed using a variety of other techniques, e.g., chemical vapordeposition. The silicon dioxide between the wafer surfaces fusestogether thermally in this process.

[0070] In some embodiments, the oxidized silicon surface from either thetarget wafer or the thin film of material region (from the donor wafer)are further pressed together and are subjected to an oxidizing ambient2401. The oxidizing ambient can be in a diffusion furnace for steamoxidation, hydrogen oxidation, or the like. A combination of thepressure and the oxidizing ambient fuses the two silicon wafers togetherat the oxide surface or interface 2305. These embodiments often requirehigh temperatures (e.g., 700° C.).

[0071] Alternatively, the two silicon surfaces are further pressedtogether and subjected to an applied voltage between the two wafers. Theapplied voltage raises temperature of the wafers to induce a bondingbetween the wafers. This technique limits the amount of crystal defectsintroduced into the silicon wafers during the bonding process, sincesubstantially no mechanical force is needed to initiate the bondingaction between the wafers. Of course, the technique used depends uponthe application.

[0072] After bonding the wafers, silicon-on-insulator has a targetsubstrate with an overlying film of silicon material and a sandwichedoxide layer between the target substrate and the silicon film, as alsoillustrated in FIG. 15. The detached surface of the film of siliconmaterial is often rough 2404 and needs finishing. Finishing occurs usinga combination of grinding and/or polishing techniques. In someembodiments, the detached surface undergoes a step of grinding using,for examples, techniques such as rotating an abrasive material overlyingthe detached surface to remove any imperfections or surface roughnesstherefrom. A machine such as a “back grinder” made by a company calledDisco may provide this technique.

[0073] Alternatively, chemical mechanical polishing or planarization(“CMP”) techniques finish the detached surface of the film, asillustrated by FIG. 16. In CMP, a slurry mixture is applied directly toa polishing surface 2501 which is attached to a rotating platen 2503.This slurry mixture can be transferred to the polishing surface by wayof an orifice, which is coupled to a slurry source. The slurry is oftena solution containing an abrasive and an oxidizer, e.g., H₂O₂, KIO₃,ferric nitrate. The abrasive is often a borosilicate glass, titaniumdioxide, titanium nitride, aluminum oxide, aluminum trioxide, ironnitrate, cerium oxide, silicon dioxide (colloidal silica), siliconnitride, silicon carbide, graphite, diamond, and any mixtures thereof.This abrasive is mixed in a solution of deionized water and oxidizer orthe like. Preferably, the solution is acidic.

[0074] This acid solution generally interacts with the silicon materialfrom the wafer during the polishing process. The polishing processpreferably uses a poly-urethane polishing pad. An example of thispolishing pad is one made by Rodel and sold under the tradename ofIC-1000. The polishing pad is rotated at a selected speed. A carrierhead which picks up the target wafer having the film applies a selectedamount of pressure on the backside of the target wafer such that aselected force is applied to the film. The polishing process removesabout a selected amount of film material, which provides a relativelysmooth film surface 2601 for subsequent processing, as illustrated byFIG. 17.

[0075] In certain embodiments, a thin film of oxide 2406 overlies thefilm of material overlying the target wafer, as illustrated in FIG. 15.The oxide layer forms during the thermal annealing step, which isdescribed above for permanently bonding the film of material to thetarget wafer. In these embodiments, the finishing process is selectivelyadjusted to first remove oxide and the film is subsequently polished tocomplete the process. Of course, the sequence of steps depends upon theparticular application.

[0076] In a specific embodiment, the silicon-on-insulator substrateundergoes a series of process steps for formation of integrated circuitsthereon. These processing steps are described in S. Wolf, SiliconProcessing for the VLSI Era (Volume 2), Lattice Press (1990), which ishereby incorporated by reference for all purposes. A portion of acompleted wafer 2700 including integrated circuit devices is illustratedby FIG. 18. As shown, the portion of the wafer 2700 includes activedevices regions 2701 and isolation regions 2703. The active devices arefield effect transistors each having a source/drain region 2705 and agate electrode 2707. A dielectric isolation layer 2709 is definedoverlying the active devices to isolate the active devices from anyoverlying layers.

[0077] Although the above description is in terms of a silicon wafer,other substrates may also be used. For example, the substrate can bealmost any monocrystalline, polycrystalline, or even amorphous typesubstrate. Additionally, the substrate can be made of III/V materialssuch as gallium arsenide, gallium nitride (GaN), and others. Themulti-layered substrate can also be used according to the presentinvention. The multi-layered substrate includes a silicon-on-insulatorsubstrate, a variety of sandwiched layers on a semiconductor substrate,and numerous other types of substrates. Additionally, the embodimentsabove were generally in terms of providing a pulse of energy to initiatea controlled cleaving action. The pulse can be replaced by energy thatis scanned across a selected region of the substrate to initiate thecontrolled cleaving action. Energy can also be scanned across selectedregions of the substrate to sustain or maintain the controlled cleavingaction. One of ordinary skill in the art would easily recognize avariety of alternatives, modifications, and variations, which can beused according to the present invention.

[0078] While the above is a full description of the specificembodiments, various modifications, alternative constructions andequivalents may be used. Therefore, the above description andillustrations should not be taken as limiting the scope of the presentinvention which is defined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A process for forming a film of material from asubstrate, said process comprising steps of: introducing particles in aselected manner through a surface of a substrate to a selected depthunderneath said surface, said particles being at a concentration at saidselected depth to define a substrate material to be removed above saidselected depth, selected manner providing a patterned distribution ofparticles at said selected depth to enhance said controlled cleavingaction; and providing energy using a fluid to a selected region of saidsubstrate to initiate a controlled cleaving action at said selecteddepth in said substrate, whereupon said cleaving action is made using apropagating cleave front to free a portion of said material to beremoved from said substrate.
 2. The process of claim 1 wherein saidparticles are derived from a source selected from the group consistingof hydrogen gas, helium gas, water vapor, methane, hydrogen compounds,and other light atomic mass particles.
 3. The process of claim 1 whereinsaid particles are selected from the group consisting of neutralmolecules, charged molecules, atoms, and electrons.
 4. The process ofclaim 1 wherein said particles are energetic.
 5. The process of claim 4wherein said energetic particles have sufficient kinetic energy topenetrate through said surface to said selected depth underneath saidsurface.
 6. The process of claim 1 wherein said step of providing energysustains said controlled cleaving action to remove said material fromsaid substrate to provide a film of material.
 7. The process of claim 1wherein said step of providing energy increases a controlled stress insaid material and sustains said controlled cleaving action to removesaid material from said substrate to provide a film of material.
 8. Theprocess of claim 1 further comprising a step of providing additionalenergy to said substrate to sustain said controlled cleaving action toremove said material from said substrate to provide a film of material.9. The process of claim 1 further comprising a step of providingadditional energy to said substrate to increases a controlled stress insaid material and sustains said controlled cleaving action to removesaid material from said substrate to provide a film of material.
 10. Theprocess of claim 1 wherein said introducing step forms damage selectedfrom the group consisting of atomic bond damage, bond substitution,weakening, and breaking bonds of said substrate at said selected depth.11. The process of claim 10 wherein said damage causes stress to saidsubstrate material.
 12. The process of claim 10 wherein said damagereduces an ability of said substrate material to withstand stresswithout a possibility of a cleaving of said substrate material.
 13. Theprocess of claim 1 wherein said propagating cleave front is selectedfrom a single cleave front or multiple cleave fronts.
 14. The process ofclaim 1 wherein said introducing step causes stress of said materialregion at said selected depth by a presence of said particles at saidselected depth.
 15. The process of claim 1 wherein said step ofintroducing is a step(s) of beam line ion implantation.
 16. The processof claim 1 wherein said step of introducing is a step(s) of plasmaimmersion ion implantation.
 17. The process of claim 1 furthercomprising a step of joining said surface of said substrate to a surfaceof a target substrate to form a stacked assembly.
 18. The process ofclaim 1 wherein said substrate is made of a material selected from thegroup consisting of silicon, diamond, quartz, glass, sapphire, siliconcarbide, dielectric, group III/V material, plastic, ceramic material,and multi-layered substrate.
 19. The process of claim 1 wherein saidsurface is planar.
 20. The process of claim 1 wherein said surface iscurved.
 21. The process of claim 1 wherein said substrate is a siliconsubstrate comprising an overlying layer of dielectric material, saidselected depth being underneath said dielectric material.
 22. Theprocess of claim 1 wherein said fluid is selected from a static sourceor a fluid jet source.
 23. The process of claim 1 wherein said fluid isdirected to said selected depth to initiate said controlled cleavingaction.
 24. The process of claim 1 wherein said fluid is derived from acompressed gas.
 25. A process for forming a multilayered substrate, saidprocess comprising steps of: providing a multilayered substrate, saidsubstrate comprising a substrate portion having a plurality of particlesbeing at a concentration at a selected depth to define a substratematerial to be removed above said selected depth; and providing a fluidto a selected region of said substrate to initiate a controlled cleavingaction at said selected depth in said substrate, whereupon said cleavingaction is made using a propagating cleave front to free a portion ofsaid material to be removed from said substrate.
 26. The process ofclaim 25 wherein said fluid is selected from a static source or a fluidjet source.
 27. The process of claim 25 wherein said fluid jet isdirected to said selected depth to initiate said controlled cleavingaction.
 28. The process of claim 25 wherein said fluid jet is derivedfrom a compressed gas.